Seal



April 11, 1944. w, s z I 2,346,197

SEAL

Filed April 16. 1942 INVENTORv Patented Apr. 11, 1944 SEAL William Stelzer, Detroit, Mich., assignor to Stoffel Seals Company, N. Y.

Incorporated, New York,

Application April 16, 1942, Serial No. 439,189

2 Claims.

The invention relates to seals, and more particularly to a seal or tag where cords or wires are securely enclosed in the rim of the seal.

This invention is related to that disclosed in my co-pending application Serial #437,529, filed April 3, 1942, but pertains more particularly to improvements to make it possible to curl the rim of the seal inwardly.

The object of the invention is to provide a seal that is tamperproof, cheap and easy to manufacture in the pre-fabricated shape and that can be applied with a minimum of effort.

Other objects and advantages will appear in the drawing, wherein:

Fig. l is a plan view of the finished seal;

Fig. 2, a section taken on line I-I;

Fig. 3, a cross-section through the cup of the seal in the pre-fabricated shape;

Fig. 4, a cross-section through a pre-fabricated cup of modified construction; and

Fig. 5, a cross-sectional view illustrating the method of closing the novel seal.

Describing the invention now in detail, the finished seal 2 shown in Figs, 1 and 2 consists of a disc-like member whose curled hollow rim 3 firmly grips the cords or wires 4. The ones shown may represent the two ends of a cord or wire eX- tending from an object or package, whereby one end of the cord passes through the left half of the rim and the other end passes through the right half, as pointed out in the co-pending application mentioned hereinbefore, both ends may pass through the same half, whereby they are gripped more tightly. The face of the seal may contain utilitarian or advertising markings whereby enameled metal sheets lithographed before stamping out the cups may be used.

Before the seal is applied to the cord the cup or capsule may look somewhat like that shown in Fig. 3. It has a central disc-like portion 5, an annular depression 6, and a rim 3 with a pair of diametrically opposed slots I which accommodate the strings or wires 4.

Since it is very dilficult to make a neat inside curl, I provide novel means to overcome the diificulty and to make special skill and high grade workmanship unnecessary. In present known methods of producing an inside curl the rim has a tendency to contract and to slide to the bottom of the groove of the curling die before the curl begins to form, causing the rim to crumble. If the curl has once been started, it is very easy to continue it with comparatively little effort. The novel means which I incorporate in the cup serve ragged edge at 8 and a slight taper of the rim at 9. The ragged edge may be produced by using a polygon blank for the cup. The slight projections do not offer sufiicient resistance to curling to deflect the edge of the rim to the bottom of the groove before the curl is started. The taper of the rim at 9 serves to further prevent deflection of the rim 3 inwardly, because when the curling die is pressed against the cup in the direction of arrow II! a force is produced urging rim 3 to expand outwardly.

It is apparent that the tendency of rim 3 to collapse inwardly when the curling die is applied increases with the height of the rim.

To produce a cup with a rim of decreased height but to accomplish the same result, I provide a modified construction using a combination inward and outward curl, shown in Fig. 4. This modified cup in the pre-fabricated shape may or may not incorporate the novel features shown in Fig. 3. The modified cup has a shorter rim I I and a deeper annular groove I2.

In this new construction rim II is curled inwardly after the cords are placed in groove I2, and then the curl is curled from the opposite direction as an outward curl.

The method of curling the rim is illustrated more clearly in Fig. 5. The tool is shown diagrammatically cnly to merely illustrate the principle of attaching the cup to the cords or wires to form the finished seal.

The tool consists of two opposed plungers I3 and I4 between which the pre-fabricated cup. shown in Fig. 4, is placed, and of a pair of opposed curling dies I5 and I5. The cords are placed into grooves I2 and slots 1. While members l3, I4 and I6 are held stationary, die I5 is depressed in the direction of arrow I! to start the curl of rim I I at the edge. After a curl I I has been produced as shown in Fig. 5, die I5 and die I6 are moved in unison in the direction of arrow I8 to complete the curl to obtain the finished rim of the seal shown in Fig. 1. Then the various members of the tool are parted and the finished seal removed.

The modus operandi for attaching the seal shown in Fig. 3 is similar to that described except that die I5 is merely depressed in the direction of arrow I'I until the curl is complete.

I wish to make it understood that by the term cord I am referring to any fastening member, wire, ribbon, or the like that is adapted to be placed into the rim of the seal.

While two preferred embodiments are shown to facilitate the start of the curl, and consist of a 5!) herein in detail, it is apparent that the invention can be carried out in ways different from that shown without departing from the principle of the invention; therefore, I do not wish to be limited in the construction or in the scope except as defined by the terms of the claims.

I claim:

1. In a cord seal, a. pre-fabricated cup having a rim tapering slightly towards the bottom, said rim having a ragged edge to facilitate curling, and diametrically opposed slits in said rim to receive cords, said rim being adapted to be curled inwardly and around said cords to seal the latter.

2. In a cord seal, a pre-fabricated cup having a rim tapering slightly towards the bottom, said rim having a ragged edge to facilitate curling, an annular depression in the bottom of said cup and adjacent to said rim to accommodate the ends of the cord to be sealed and diametrically opposed slots in said rim to receive the cord, said rim being adapted to be curled inwardly and around 10 said cord to seal the latter.

WILLIAM STELZER. 

